WGA Moscow Market Development Diary | In-depth Visit to Lyublino Market
Date: March 20, 2025
Location: Lyublino District, Moscow Oblast, Russia
Executive Team: WGA Foreign Trade Division · Zhai Zhiming
【First Day Quick View: Initial Exploration of Market Ecology】
At 6 o’clock in the morning, the morning fog in Moscow had not yet dissipated, and Zhai Zhiming had arrived at the core commercial street of Lyublino District. As the second largest gathering place for Chinese in Moscow, there are Chinese restaurants with the sign of “Chinatown” and electronic cigarette stores full of Slavic style. The first day’s itinerary focuses on 15 Chinese companies, focusing on screening channel merchants with physical retail + online distribution capabilities.
Key findings:
Price-sensitive market: Most Chinese merchants reported that local consumers have a high acceptance of disposable atomizers (unit price < 50 rubles), but high-end cartridge-changing products (such as the WGA Pro series) need to be matched with the “limited co-branded” strategy to break through; Policy warning: The heads of two stores mentioned that the customs has recently strictly inspected imported products containing nicotine salts, and suggested that our company prepare Russian compliance test reports in advance; Scenario-based needs: Many store owners displayed the hot-selling “office portable atomizer pen”, which inspired us to develop an antifreeze product line suitable for Russia’s severe cold climate. [On-site photo] Zhai Zhiming negotiated with the store owner in the “Oriental Trade City”, with the WGA 2025 hot-selling Xingchen series atomizers displayed on the background shelves
[Next day’s attack: breaking the ice of localized cooperation]
After switching to local companies, the team adopted the **”technical demonstration + data comparison” model to contact 6 local e-cigarette brands. In the Lumina Tech company conference room, Zhai Zhiming disassembled the WGA fifth-generation ceramic core atomizer core on site and demonstrated the stability of 300 consecutive firings through comparative tests** (local competitors only have an average of 150 times).
Core breakthroughs:
B2B channel: reached an agreement with VapeMaster to use its channel network covering 500+ chain pharmacies to distribute products;
ODM cooperation: EcoNova proposed customized requirements – to develop atomizer cores that can carry traditional Russian herbal essential oils (such as chamomile), and the two parties have agreed to submit technical solutions next week;
Policy insights: It was learned from Moscow customs officials that all imported e-cigarettes must be pre-installed with child lock devices from 2024, and our R&D department has launched an emergency response plan.
[Video clip] Laboratory scene: WGA engineers explain the ceramic core anti-leakage technology in Russian, and foreign customers nod and take notes frequently
[Market portrait and strategy adjustment]
Consumer behavior observation:
Young groups (18-25 years old) prefer neon-colored bodies + fruit flavors, but are restricted by regulations and can only sell 0 nicotine products;
Middle-aged and elderly users (30-50 years old) prefer large-capacity oil tanks + menthol flavors, and are sensitive to the “reduced smoking” function;
Special scene: About 30% of customers buy atomizers as “gifts”, and the packaging must conform to Russian aesthetics (gold/dark blue as the main colors).
Real-time strategy optimization:
SKU streamlining plan: reduce the current 28 products to 12, and concentrate resources to build a three-level matrix of “entry-level (<300 rubles) – mid-range (800-1200 rubles) – high-end (>2000 rubles)”;
Local service upgrade: reach an agreement with Moscow logistics company RedStar Express, promising “72-hour store replenishment response”;
Community marketing pilot: launch the “scan code to get ruble vouchers” activity for the Chinese community, and simultaneously create the #WGA_Moscow topic challenge on VKontakte (Russian version of FB).
